Friday, 11 September 2015

the kids room: handmade and vintage

I never in my life imagined that it would take us so flaming long to decorate the kiddos shared room - especially as we didn't even have to paint any walls. There was the saga with the bunkbeds, which left me wondering if perhaps they were going to have to sleep on the floor forever, and then furniture had to be painted so it fitted in with the more neutral theme, I couldn't find any subtle, gender-free bedding or fabrics, didn't know where to look for a table that was big enough for two, but didn't take up too much space and kept changing my mind about whether we should go for a blind or curtains (we went blind in the end - it made the room look bigger). I've still got a few bits to sew, and some shelves to paint, but we're finally onto the fun part - faffing about with prints, little ornament-y things and cushions. The best!

I've finally managed to get some cushions sewn up over the last week or so - I bought some lovely fabric from The Eternal Maker in Chichester (definitely recommend a visit if you're local!) absolutely ages ago, and until recently hadn't got round to doing anything with it. The tiger print is my favourite - it really reminds me of the tiger from The Tiger Who Came to Tea, which is one of Ben and Daisy's favourite books. I'm making them a little snug-reading-area type thing to sit and be cosy in; there's a few more cushions to sew, and we're going to get a bean bag to pop in there as well, so there's plenty of room for both of them (and hopefully no fighting about who's taking up the most space!)

We've put a few shelves up, so I spent time hunting round car boot sales and online shops to find quirky little bits and pieces to fill them with (because obviously, you put up the shelves and then find the contents.....). I mentioned in a previous post that I found some great Ladybird books at the Vintage and Very Nice sale in Chichester, and I also came home with a vintage Chad Valley globe - this was like finding the Holy Grail for me; I've been looking for one almost since Ben was born, but they've always been too dented and rusty or too expensive. And then this one was just sitting there, all perfect, and for the princely sum of £8!
I need to take a minute to rave about these wooden animals as well; they're by a brand called Holztiger, (although I got them from eBay) and they're handmade from native maple and beechwood. They're about the average price for wooden toys, but they're just incredible - the finish is beautiful, the quality is amazing, and the details are really lovely. I love how they look almost vintage, but that they've also that modern sturdy quality that you don't tend to find in children's toys these days. I honestly can't recommend them enough!

I'm determined that this weekend, I'm going to get the rest of the sewing done and the shelves painted, so hopefully next week I'll be able to do a bit of a 'ta-dah' post on the finished room. Hopefully!

7 comments

I love that tiger fabric - it's so pretty, and definitely very reminiscent of Judith Kerr's illustrations! The Ladybirds are lovely too - I need to find a nice way to display our collection of them when we (finally) get round to smartening up our boys' shared bedroom.

I always have great intentions when it comes to sorting out rooms, but it seems to take me forever to actually do it! I would have like to front face the Ladybirds, but we'd run out of wall space - love to see what you do with yours!

I love your cushions...that tiger fabric is brilliant and the way you have mix them all three together works very well. Is your blue lantern electric or candle lit? I am adding some nautical accents to my son's White room and a little lamp like this would be perfect, would you mind sharing where you got it from? thanks a lot and thanks for all the inspiration. Pati x

Hello! Thanks for the lovely words - the lantern is from good old IKEA, and it's candle lit (but ours is just for show, ha!) http://www.ikea.com/gb/en/catalog/products/80226528/ - there's a small blue-grey one, and a bigger version in beige, which I'm thinking about getting for the lounge!

Thanks Victoria, in the end I bought a battery led miner/ lantern one via dotcomgiftshop which is called "battery led Hurricane lantern". They are nice and practical to add a little bit of light to a child's room corner. Thanks for your reply and have a nice week. You always show lovely things. Pati x

Totally love the tiger fabric, I may need a trip to the Eternal a Maker soon too (although I am pants at restraining myself in there and it's not good for my wallet). I really love the blue tit picture too - where is that from? Cannot wait to see pics of the room when you've finished - all the sneak peaks you've given so far have been gorgeous. Kate x

It's SO good in there - I kept picking stuff up and putting it down again, so difficult to decide! The picture is an Ingela P Arrhenius postcard that came in a pack of seven from the Hambledon (http://www.thehambledon.com/products/woods-friends-postcards) They're out of stock at the moment, but it's worth signing up so you get notified when they're back in. I can't take credit for those - I saw them on Artemis's lovely Junkaholique blog!